Sugary diets linked to heart disease risk

Washington, April 21 (ANI): Diets high in added sugars increase the risk of cardiovascular disease, says a new study.

To reach the conclusion, researchers at Emory University analyzed U.S. government nutritional data and blood lipid levels in more than 6,000 adult men and women between 1999 and 2006.

The study subjects were divided into five groups according to the amount of added sugar and caloric sweeteners they consumed daily.

The results showed that people who consumed more added sugar were more likely to have higher cardiovascular disease risk factors, including higher triglyceride levels and higher ratios of triglycerides to HDL-C, or good cholesterol.

"Just like eating a high-fat diet can increase your levels of triglycerides and high cholesterol, eating sugar can also affect those same lipids," said study co-author Miriam Vos, assistant professor of paediatrics, Emory School of Medicine.

The study has published in the April 20, 2010, issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). (ANI)